Creative thoughts

I bought this Japanese pattern book on ebay, having at last discovered who sells them in the UK. I have totally forgotten where I got the link – thank you whoever it was- but the ebay seller has all sorts ofinspiring Japanese craft books. I had never heard of these books until I got sucked into the world of blogging. I’ve had a look at lots of pictures (via Flickr – button on the right) and seen some nice ideas and picked up some useful stuff for teaching in workshops. Mainly the books are design ideas, which is not what I need or want, but this one is quite different from the rest. It has diagrams of how to create amazing structures in garments. This kind of sculptural approach to fashion design in uniquely Japanese and I love it. All the text is in Japanese, but the diagrams are just about enough for me to work it out roughly. I wouldn’t copy any of the specific designs in the book anyway, just use it as a source book for techniques to adapt and develop.

I’ve been doing various little bits this weekend including this covered book for a birthday present. I used a scrap of sil dupion and made a little quatrefoil pattern using trapunto, one of my favourite techniques. It creates a delicate quilted pattern on the surface. I’ve wanted to try trapunto for book covers for ages, so this was a great excuse. I’m pleased with how it turned out, but wish I had had more time to do a more complicated design. Next time…

I had a productive day yesterday putting up shelves to store masses of fabric on, and generally tidying up. I also had a play with some knitting, but more of that anon, when I have photos.

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3 thoughts on “Creative thoughts”

Mmmm, I drool over the Japanese craft books shown on Flickr and other blogs. Your one sounds particularly tasty! The Japanese approach to fabric as architecture is very attractive. I’m almost too afraid to investigate what’s available on Ebay etc. because I’m sure it will be a very slippery downhill slope into book buying madness ;D